Laura and Brian Weissbart

We met on an internet dating site. Laura’s name was “Must Love Dogs” and thankfully Brian does. Our relationship started with long phone calls (filled with laughter) and a lukewarm first date. Laura’s friends said give him a chance, and thank goodness Brian asked her out again. We met at Brian’s house, and he bought the same soda Laura ordered on our first date (and even had a lemon for her to squeeze into her drink, as she did when we went out the first time). He made her an amazing chocolate cake. Laura saw how nurturing and kind hearted Brian is. We hugged at the end of the night and still joke about who initiated the hug. Brian’s sure Laura did, and Laura says, “you really gave me quite a hug.” What matters now is that we hug and kiss each day, we express our appreciation and love for each other frequently, and we make each other laugh all the time. Laura feels like the best part of her life began, once she met Brian, and Brian can’t imagine his life without her. We are so excited to have a child, learn about his or her ideas, and create a nurturing, fun environment from which our child can develop into whoever he or she was meant to be.

We live in a spacious townhouse in Citrus Heights, CA, a suburb of Sacramento. The house is often filled with the aroma of something cooking on the stove or baking in the oven. Our home feels fun and welcoming to kids and our friends love stopping by. There’s already a collection of children’s stories, and Laura’s written a couple herself. We are looking forward to reading them with our child. For now, we share our home with our dog, Sam and our three cats, Doc, Olliver, and Pepe LePew. Our cats are as people oriented as cats can be, and Sam loves attention from everyone, especially kids. Our child will have lots of fun playing with the animals, being outside when it’s warm, and swimming in the pool during the summer. We’re excited to share our favorite spots with a child and to discover new ones that are especially fun for kids.

Both of our families are very excited about our decision to adopt. Adoption is nothing new to Laura's family. Laura's grandmother adopted two children many years ago. Our child will be the first grandchild on both sides, so the “spoil factor” will be high. Brian’s mom and brother live in Fullerton, CA near Disneyland. Brian’s mom is already talking about the adorable baby outfits she’ll make once the baby arrives. Laura’s family lives in Miami, FL. Her mom lives walking distance from the ocean and is looking forward to taking her first grandchild to Miami Beach. Laura’s dad and step-mom cannot wait to be grandparents and have promised to baby-proof their house the second we book our baby’s first flight to visit them in Miami.

We feel fortunate to have very close and loving friends. We know they’re biased, but our friends think we’re going to be “great parents” and they can’t wait to be “aunties” and “uncles!” One of the most important people in our lives is Michaelah, a teenage girl, Laura met years ago. She told us we are like second parents to her, and says, "everything about you guys is what parent should be."

Most importantly, we know that children need to feel loved and valued. We plan to nurture and support our child by paying attention to his or her ideas, feelings, and experiences. We hope that our son or daughter will come to know that he or she can share anything with us (interests, worries, disappointments, accomplishments) and expect to be supported. We eat dinner together every night and plan to continue doing that when our baby arrives. It is a time when we share what our day was like, check in with each other, laugh, etc. In our home, education is a priority. We see school as a child’s “job,” and helping kids, when they need it, as a parent’s responsibility. Of course kids need limits, and we plan to set them in a loving way. In our home there is a lot of laughter; we look forward to being silly and playful with our son or daughter. Finally, we know how important it is for kids to feel special to their parents. We will always do our best to show our son or daughter how much we know about and enjoy him or her (making his or her favorite treats, putting notes in his or her lunch box, and giving our son or daughter time when he or she has our undivided attention).